No Place Like Home
by DemonSpyofCakeandCodexes
Summary: Team RED are given 10 weeks vacation and after a heated discussion, they agree to spent a week in each other's way of life. Friendships are formed and grudges forgotten as they embark on this tale of Holiday, or Hell!
1. Introduction

**No Place Like Home: - Introduction.**

Heya! :) This is my first TF2 Fanfiction, but I decided to revise the story a bit. (Sorry for those of you that read/reviewed it before!) So I hope you enjoy it again or from the beginning.

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"_Victory."_

The single word echoed over the rolling terrain of the dustbowl and for a second, not a sound was made. The momentary silence was cut short though as the sounds of cheers erupted from one corner of the battlefield to the other from a band of scarlet-wearing mercenaries. Shorter still was the time they took to cut down their fleeing foes, the sound of gunfire and slicing blades adding to the pungent smell of war that thickened the already stifling hot air as their feet pounded the sand beneath them.

It had been a long and arduous day for Team RED who had been fighting for hours to defend the base, but their efforts were not in vain. They had beaten back their foes. While some, like the surreptitious Spy headed straight to the showers, others like Demoman simply dragged themselves to the housing quarters and fell to sleep in the lounge.

Scout was among those - wanting peace and quiet after such an exhausting day - who returned to their rooms and a room was just what one would call it. It was white walled, with a little furniture and a bed. Of course Scout has made some minor alterations to his bedroom, such as putting up posters of his favourite baseball team, the Boston Red Sox. He had also filled up the wardrobe with clothes revolving around his passion for the American past time. In contrast to this, and looking very much out of place, was a woolly sweater hung over the back of a chair that sat – very much unused since the youth mainly spent all his time out on his feet – in front of a wooden desk that was equally abandoned.

Stranger still however, was the white envelope that sat on the dark polished surface, the colour standing out almost luminescent against it. Curiously, Scout picked up the letter; the name "Alex" was neatly written on the front of the white paper, nothing like the messy scrawl he received from his mother's letters. He smiled, envisioning her scribbling away excitedly, nose almost touching the paper as her hand tried it's best to keep up with her racing thoughts. She frequently wrote to him and sent him presents every Christmas and birthday, which was the source of the greatly appreciated sweater as the desert nights often reached an unbearable freezing that even the heating couldn't ward off.

Eager to find out who had written to him, Scout crossed the room and in three strides had sat down on his bed and begun to tear away at the envelope. He was struck immediately by how formal the letter looked as it plopped out onto his lap. Gulping, Scout lifted it to his face to read, the thickness of the glossy paper making itself known and washing unease over him, what if someone at home had died?

_His anxieties quickly melted away._

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Thank you for reading and I hope you liked it :)


	2. Chapter 1: Holiday or Hoax?

**No Place Like Home - Chapter I: Holiday or Hoax?**

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To Alex,

_We are writing to inform you that due to RED's recent victory streak of 284-0, we felt as though BLU have begun to lose their confidence. __Following that, RED had scheduled a meeting with BLU. It has come to both our agreements that for 10 weeks while BLU is either training or rehiring members of their team, reluctantly, RED has allowed their mercenaries have this time to take a break, a _holiday_, whichever would suit you._

_Please note however, that any member of either RED or BLU_

_Attempting to sabotage this plan will be discharged, and_

_Then executed._

_R.E.D & B.L.U_

As if in planned unison, another round of cheering chorused from the rooms down the hall to the left and right of him. Scout burst out of his room to the sight of many of his teammates, exhaustion forgotten, whooping, dancing, bro-hugging or simply a combination of all three. After some time, the team came down from their height of euphoria and looked around at each other, and then at the sight of Demoman who was scowling at them from the living room door.

"Whurrgnnon?" he growled, glaring with his single eye at the team.

"VACATION!" Heavy boomed loudly, scooping up the Scotsman into a tight embrace. Gasping, the demolitions expert fought for breath.

"Whadaya mean vacation? I think you load of gals'abeen in ther sun fer too lo-" Hurriedly, Scout pushed his letter in front of Demoman's nose while eagerly jumping up and down on the spot.

"It's true! It's true! 10 whole weeks!" And for once, no one seemed to mind the boy's enthusiasm. But just then, the mood was broken by the Soldier clearing his throat. The man had left his room to discover the racket, and his face held a stony expression, well, from what they could see of it anyway.

"Am I hearing you correctly, boy? 10 weeks of vacation? How do we not know that this is a setup by BLU to get us away for those weeks so they can take over our base, destroy our technology and build weapons far superior to our own?" He snapped, taking each letter from every man present and ripping them to shreds. Looking solemn, the team became downcast. No one couldn't say that the Soldier didn't have a point, but it had seemed so real when they had read it, and some had already begun to plan how they would spend these precious 10 weeks that they had.

"Well I wouldn't wana look a gift horse in the mouth but… now thatcha mention it, it COULD be a plot to take us outta the picture." Everyone turned to look at the Engineer, who was had a speculating expression. "We should take this up with The Administrator…"

Scout sighed, and Heavy patted the top of his head comfortingly.

"Little toy man vill find the answer." The big man smiled with confidence, and the other grinned hopefully.

"Gotcha. Alright I'm gonna go catch some Zees for tomorrow, it's double cross, right?"

Soldier grunted in confirmation to the boy and strode, shredded letters still in hand, back to his room.

"5:00 am tomorrow boys!" he called over his shoulder, and was met by a chorus of groans.

"Aw C'mon Solly!"

"-Sunday tomorrow and everything!"

"Must be off his head-"

"Too many shovels to the noggin."

"5:00 am or I will wake you maggots and you will NOT like it." He called again, slamming his door behind him.

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><p>Much later, Sniper tumbled into his bunk, the letter he had found in his nest still floating in his mind. Pulling it out of his pocket and taking another read through, the assassin's eyes narrowed as he tried to focus on the words that were quickly becoming blurred with sleepiness. Just as he was descending into slumber, a thought crossed his mind.<p>

"Wait…ow'd BLU know our names?"

But sleep engulfed him before he could dwell on it any further.

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	3. Chapter 2: Burning Coffee

**No Place Like Home - Chapter II: Burning Coffee**

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I couldn't breathe.

Stumbling, I tried to locate the door to the small room that was overflowing with chaotic clawing flames. It was as if someone had torn away the four walls around me and revealed hell itself behind them. My skin dripped with sweat as my heart pounded painfully in my chest. It seemed that no matter where I went, the fire was all around me, guiding me, forcing me to move towards its source: a pair of empty, disk-like eyes on a black rubbery gas mask that leered down at me as I tried in vain to escape the inferno.

I squeezed my eyes shut. Whatever death awaited me, please make it quick.

An ice cold pain suddenly jolted through me. My eyes opened wide as I dragged in the air to scream… and was met by a shovel, flying through the air towards my face…

Scout leapt out of bed, the tool making a loud cracking sound against the head of his bed. Whipping around, he came face to face with the Soldier, who's head was suddenly so close to his he had to lean backward to avoid behind knocked unconscious by the man's helmeted skull as he ranted and raved in a voice that Scout deemed too deafening at…what time was it?

"-WHEN I SAY 500 HOURS I MEAN I WANT YOU UP AND READY AND DRESSED AND-"

Ahh, 5:00 am, Scout thought. Gazing around the room at anywhere other than the lunatic that had not yet paused in his speech, which had now turned to one of his many tales of how he had to get up at the crack of dawn every morning so the young man had 'no right to complain'. His eyes settled on his alarm clock, which read that it was not 5, but 4 in the morning.

"What the crap Solly? You said 5:00am not 4:00am!"

And if the others weren't awake already, their 'Commander' surely woke them up by chasing the Scout all over the housing quarters and screaming at the top of his lungs.

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><p>Fortunately for Sniper, who's camper van was far enough away from RED Base's housing quarters to avoid Soldier's morning wrath, climbed out of his bed at half past 4, stretching his lanky frame as best as he could in the small space. He was used to waking up early anyway, so Soldier's demands to wake up early didn't change much for him. His keen hearing could faintly pick up on the chaos insuing inside the main base, but also on a pair of footsteps heading his way. Opening the door to the vehicle, he was met by Engineer, who had his hand raised as if to knock on the camper's door.<p>

"Good morning, Down Under. Coffee?" He offered the Australian a cup of the steaming liquid in his favourite '#1 Sniper' mug, which he gladly accepted, following Engineer back to their housing quarters. Being careful not to spill the drink, Sniper streached again, this time feeling his back give a satisfying click."Been 'round everyone else's places and hardly no one but yourself is awake yet, save for Soldier and Scout." Engineer continued, staring up through his goggles at Sniper. "Oh, Spy too. That fella' never sleeps, I swear." Sniper hummed in agreement at the Texan, who was unlocking the door to the communal kitchen the mercenary's shared. "Oh well." The shorter man grinned. "Maybe I'll have the kitchen to myself for the morning."

Sniper had to hand it to him, he was kind of glad that Engineer was cooking this morning.

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	4. Chapter 3: Of Wrenches and Cunning Plans

**No Place Like Home - Chapter III: Of Wrenches and Cunning Plans.**

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The seconds rolled by idly as the Engineer and the Sniper sat at the kitchen table, drinking coffee and enjoying the breakfast that the Texan had cooked for them. It was a routine they were both used to, as they woke way before anyone else on their team - save for Soldier and Spy - and the two had become good friends quickly. It helped bring Sniper out of the shell he had been in, but he still rarely talked to anyone other than Engineer. They often spoke of their lives before the war, and in some cases, family (Which was sometimes difficult for Sniper.). But gradually the silence grew and grew, until a recognisable pair of Cuban heels could be heard clicking their way.

Sniper's eyes turned slowly from looking out of the window, to glance at the man sitting next to him, who had paused in the middle of his sip of coffee, his smile thinning. Chuckling quietly, the marksman watched as Engineer placed his drink down. His hand, seeming to 'rest' at his side, curled around the wrench that was safely stowed in his overalls. Sniper knew the signs of restlessness when he saw them. That was his job, after all, to observe things that people missed, but it was only too obvious the Texan was not happy.

"_Bonjour_ to you too Mes Amis." The distorted sound of an invisi-watch de-cloaking could be heard, and the now-visible Spy raised his eyebrows, leaning back against the kitchen counter, the kettle boiling behind him. Sniper knew that there was about as much chance of the Texan replying as the moon turning purple, so after a moments hesitation, he cleared his throat and replied to the suited man.

"Apologies Spy, _neither_ of us are fully awake yet." Sniper stretched, answering for the Engineer too. Spy smirked almost knowingly and began to pour himself a cup of tea, not once breaking eye contact with the Australian man. Chillingly, he noted, the other man never blinked either.

An awkward silence descended on the room, and the Engineer rapidly became restless, he was used to the warm, pleasant background noises of his machines. The hum of his dispenser, the beeping and clicking of his sentry, and the whirring of his teleporters. The Spy was the total opposite, he brought a cold silence, and dealt his killing stabs with perfect precision, the only sounds being the gurgling of his victim as they choked and convulsed into death, or the whispering whoosh of his invisi-watch before he faded into the shadows. The Texan made a move to get up from the table when the Sniper suddenly broke the silence, a rare occasion for the normally quiet man.

"So, we fighting in 3 hours, right?"

"Oui, doublecross." The Spy confirmed curtly, looking between the other two mercenaries. He made no movement to join the others at the table. This was partly out of curious observation, and also because he was not one for socialising with his fellow team mates. He preferred getting the information he needed and then leaving as soon as possible. But mostly the reason he was not venturing over to the table because he could see the hostility practically oozing from the Engineer, and did not wish to become a victim to the infamous wrench he had seen crush the heads of the spies on team BLU. Still, there was no harm in trying, right?

Spy pushed himself away from the counter, and took a step towards the table.

The reaction was immediate, as soon as Spy sat down, Engineer stood up and without looking back, left the kitchen. Quirking a brow at Sniper in a silent question, the other man replied with a small shake of his head as if to drop the subject. The Frenchman sipped his tea before clearing his throat.

"I hear there eez some dispute over whether ze letters that arrived are genuine...oui?" Sniper sighed, producing the folded letter from his pocket and spreading it out on the table in front of him. The Spy scrutinized the message with his dark eyes, before looking up at the Australian. "Eet does not make any sense, why would ze enemy team know our names? Also, how would zey know where our rooms are? Zis building eez detached from the main fighting compound." As he finished his explanation on his views, Spy watched Sniper's reaction to each factor he was putting forward.

"I see yer point but... wouldn't it be possible for the other spy's to get in and find all that out? They're supposed teh do stuff like that." Sniper mused, but saw his comrade frown as if in negative thought. "What? I 'ave a point."

"Indeed. But I have doubts zat team BLU could think out a plan zis thoroughly; they hardly keep to their own tactics." Before Sniper could open his mouth to speak, Spy carried on. "In any case, ze best thing to do would be to carry on as normal."

"Oh, right. Yer yer, will do." Sniper folded the letter back up and pocketed it again. He watched as the other man rose from his chair and strode, having drunk his tea, towards the kitchen doors. He looked away and was just about to return to his morning schedule when he heard the Spy's heels stop clicking. When he glanced back at the door, Spy was looking at him with a strange, almost lonely expression. But when he blinked, his face was neutral again.

"Mon ami, I am aware of our Engineer's hostility, and don't think zat I don't know why. He does not trust me, and I do not expect any of you to." And with that, he cloaked and was gone, leaving the Sniper to think over what he had just seen and heard.

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	5. Chapter 4: Don't Push It

**No Place Like Home - Chapter IV: Don't push it.**

Sniper stared long after Spy, turning the words over in his head. True, no one really trusted Spy, but they really had no reason to dislike him, not even Engineer. Yes, Spy's job was about deceiving others, backstabbing and stealing, but when it came down to it…he wasn't like that to his comrades. He kept himself to himself, and never bothered anyone else except for the times when he required information on missions. Thinking back, Sniper remembered when he first was recruited to RED, he hardly spoke a word, and acted nearly as secretive and elusive as Spy. Perhaps he was just lonely, and needed someone to talk to. That's how Engineer had helped him, hadn't he?

'_Maybe…if people actually talked to 'im more, he wouldn't 'ave to be such a…'_ Sniper shook his head, standing up from the table and tucking the chairs in before leaving to get ready in his camper for the days fighting.

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'_7:45, Brilliant.'_

Scout scowled, sitting atop Sniper's ledge that overlooked the bridge. He was bored, and running out of things in the nearby vacancy to push down into the bottomless pit that the lower bridge was built over. He'd fallen down there enough times to know it was bottomless, and had waited there impatiently, sometimes up to 10 minutes for the respawn to kick in (and 10 minutes was a long time for the fast moving teen).

Laying back on the ledge with his arms behind his head, he shut his eyes and listened to the birds.

'_Ma always said there was supposed to be something calming about the sound of the birds singing, or something like that.'_ Scout frowned, a yawn slipped from him on account of the sun that warmed his skin. He liked hot weather…

"Oi, gremlin, match starts in 5 minutes." Scout peeked open one eye to look up at Sniper, who was crouched next to him, rifle in hand.

'_Huh? I must have been daydreaming' _Scout thought, springing to his feet and following Sniper back to the respawn room. As he climbed the stairs, he noticed a heated discussion between Soldier and the usually quiet Engineer.

"I'm tellin' you, Soldier, it's not cause I'm afraid o' them BLU's, it's 'cause I've got faith in the letter."

"Did you take it up with the Administrator then?" Soldier narrowed his eyes beneath his helmet, livid with Engineer's defiant comment.

"I told yer before, she's not answerin' at all, the line has been cut off! If yer so eager to disspr-" He was cut off by Soldier turning to the rest of the team and declaring:

"Well until we get an answer we shall carry on like we _HAVE_ been doing until further notice!"

Engineer strode past Scout and Sniper without looking back, it was clear the normally soft spoken man was angry, as neither had ever seen him argue with anyone like that.

"Where are you going Engineer! Stop where you are!"

"You go out there'n waste yer time, but not _mine_." The mechanic said darkly, before disappearing around the bottom of the stairs towards the intel room. No one spoke for a moment, before a sitting Heavy cast a worried glance up to Medic.

"Docktor…vill leetle toy man be ok?"

"Ja, he vill be fine Herr Heavy." Medic replied gently, patting the larger man's shoulder, which was met by Heavy's broad smile.

They waited for the match to begin...

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><p>They waited and waited, and truth be told, half of the men present were not of the patient type. It took all of 1 minute for Scout to begin pacing, and the sight made all the others more restless. Soldier began tapping his foot, frowning deeply. Spy lit a cigarette and checked his <em>real<em> watch frequently, as his invisibility watch could not tell the time. Demoman cast his one eyed gaze around at the others, letting out an impatient sigh. Heavy stared up at Medic from his sitting position on the floor and poked his arm, making the doctor turn and answer his questioning look with a shrug. Pyro's masked face carried a blank expression, so whether 'it' was irritated or not was not clear.

Sniper watched this all silently, before checking his own watch. The match should have begun 5 minutes ago – and the Administrator was never late -, so what was going on?

Another 5 minutes crawled by, seeming hours long, and still the rasping voice that gave the men the order to commence warfare never rang out. By this time, everyone was getting annoyed save the Sniper, who's own normally excellent patience was running thin. He heard Heavy cough into his hand, then slowly break the awkward silence.

"Docktor…?"

"Ja?" Medic replied, his patience restoring a little for the big man.

"I think… leetle toy man was right…after all." The Russian slowly admitted, looking over at Soldier, who twitched at the comment. "If there is fighting today, why has it not started?"

Everyone knew, that in one way or another, Heavy had voiced what they were all feeling. Demoman, after looking around at everyone again, said:

"Aye…he may have bin righ' all this time." He scratched his head, before addressing the rest of the team. "Well'a don't know about all of yeh, but I'm headin' back teh the lounge the watch me a'bit o' telly. Pyro you comin'?" The masked figure nodded, following Demoman out and waving cheerfully to the others, who were looking around at each other with raised eyebrows (or in Soldiers case, a tilted head).

The others went on their way mostly alone, though Heavy and Medic went together (the pair were rarely seen apart). Scout, seeing as he had nothing better to do, went along to find Sniper at his nest, but he was shocked to find Spy perched up on one of the crates by the ladder at the bottom.

'_Shit, well that's a conversation I could avoid' _Scout looked up at the nest, then back down to Spy, only to see he had vanished. _'Huh?' _Scout rubbed his eyes, trying to discern where Spy had gone, but the man had just gone. Not trusting whether the Frenchman had his invisi-watch on, he turned and began to walk away.

Only to bump right into Spy.

"Jeez watch where your standin' what the hell were you doing?" Scout dodged around Spy, facing him all the time to make sure he didn't make any sudden moves.

"I was returning to ze Red base" Spy arched a brow, defensive.

"Oh yeah? Then why did I just see you by Sniper's nest?" Scout growled, suspicious.

"Am I not allowed to talk to my comrades?" Spy's eyes narrowed, he disliked the boy greatly for his irritating voice, his immaturity, his little comments and taunts, and the nicknames-

"Whatever Froggie."

That one especially.

But Spy grinned.

"And what were YOU doing here anyway, boy?" This comment made Scout falter, then glare at him.

He could see the rage building behind Scout's eyes, and couldn't resist pushing him a little further. It was cruel, but the boy needed to be knocked down a peg or two. "You'd better get inside, before I tell the rest of the team about your little crush." It was clear to him that Scout had not been expecting this comment, and his fists clenched.

But in all fairness, Spy didn't expect the fist that collided with the side of his face either.

Staggering back, he held his jaw, thanking god that nothing was broken.

"You freaking asshole! You know what your problem is! You just can't be friendly to anyone, that's why you don't recognise it when two people are buddies! Sniper's a cool guy, and he's been the only person on this team that don't treat me like a little kid. You think you're real clever with all the faggy jokes but I bet your just jealous because you can't EVER get anyone to actually consider you as their pal!"

Spy's brows lifted, he tried to respond but was cut down quickly.

"Scout ze onl-"

"**Shut up!** I don't even know why I'm still talkin' to you because I don't like you, I never had since day one! And neither does anyone else! You should just go join the BLU's because I'd love to be the one who smashes your head into the dust!" Scout panted, shoulders rising and falling. Spy looked dumbfounded, he'd never meant to upset the boy this badly, but he knew there was some truth in what Scout had said.

'_Oh crap I've done it now, the Spook's gonna kill me in my sleep I know it'_ Scout backed off, then bolted indoors, leaving Spy to stare after him.

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><p>A little while later Sniper's scope zoomed in on the lonely figure of Spy walking along the lower of the two Doublecross bridges. Sniper knew that if he was going to go ahead with his plan of talking more to him, now was his chance. Lowering his rifle he walked to the edge of the ledge and cleared his throat nervously.<p>

"Oi Spy!" He called out. Spy paused, before looking up in the direction of Sniper, who was waving his hand.

"Bonjour." He answered curtly, turning around fully to face the marksman, who had sat down on the ledge.

"Where were ye thinkin' of goin'? That's BLU's base over there" Sniper raised an eyebrow, but Spy shook his head, and was about to answer him snappily, when he noticed the concerned tone in Sniper's voice. Sighing, he pondered his options. He could confide in the quiet man, or brush him off and tell him to mind his own business.

Still, he held up a finger for silence, before vanishing. Sniper waited patiently for a whole minute until he felt Spy's presence behind him. Turning his head he looked behind him at his comrade who was standing there, lighting up a cigarette. The two stared at each other before Sniper gestured that Spy should sit down, which he did.

"I heard yer little…confrontation with Scout earlier." Spy looked down, drawing a knee to his chest and resting his chin on it. His posture, even more so than his lack of usual superiority, showed how upset he was.

'_He looks almost human, fer once.'_ Sniper's lip twitched in a small smile. _'It's hard to remember he's just the same as the rest of us, what with all the facades he puts up'_

Stretching his legs out in front of him, Sniper attempted to converse with the man again.

"And er, Scout doesn't really 'ave a crush on me does he?" At this, Spy's eyes showed a twinkle of amusement, then he shook his head.

"Non. I made zat up because I know 'ow easy it eez to wind him up"

"Well it sure worked." Sniper paused. He wanted to make Spy cheerful, or at least not mopey anymore, but he wasn't going to do that if he didn't at least show some kindness to him. "Hey, did yeh get some ice fer that punch? It looked like it stung."

Spy shook his head, looking down off the ledge. He did have a small smile on his face though. Perhaps taking into account the Australian's kind words. Sniper knew he was getting somewhere, but didn't want to push him too hard. He waited for Spy to reply patiently.

"I was asking for eet. Ze boy really wants me dead."

"N' that's why you were crossin' over to the BLU's base?" Sniper had to hide a growl. "Look Spy I know 'e wants teh kill yeh, but I hate the break it to yeh, so do the BLUs" At this, Spy shrugged.

"I have nothing to do with any of my team mates anyway. Does eet really matter what side I am on?"

Sniper stared, shocked. The Frenchman was usually so careful to hide his emotions, always so ready with a clever comment if people questioned him about himself. He never really spoke to any of them, on the field or not, and he never ever was seen brooding like this.

"Look, Spy." Sniper hesitantly reached out to the side and put a hand on his team-mate's shoulder. The man didn't shrug him off, so he continued. "I know not a lot of the other guys trust yeh, and I know some of them feel…uncomfortable around yeh." He chose his words carefully, not wanting to discourage the man further. "But I think yer a nice guy. Quiet and, well, spooky. And I mean spooky as in yer very observant and seem t'know more than you let on, not spooky as in yer weird but…"

He was embarrassingly aware that he was rambling now, but Spy offered him a sympathetic smile, as if he understood. "What I mean teh say is I don't have anything against yeh." He concluded. He wasn't good at this comforting thing, but it was relieving to see Spy smile happily back at him.

"_Merci_, Sniper." Spy patted his arm, then they both looked back over the battlefield.

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	6. Chapter 5: An Agressive Assembly

**No Place Like Home - Chapter VI: An Aggressive Assembly.**

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3 hours had passed since the match was supposed to begin. Engineer sat down in his workshop, which connected to his bedroom, and began drawing away at the blueprints he has been working on that morning. Truly, he wasn't angry at Soldier any more, not really, but he knew that if he kept himself busy, then he wouldn't feel the niggling need to seek him out and talk things through.

Talking with Soldier would not result in an apology, it would result in a heated discussion, and then an argument, and then no one would win. Engineer had learned this much in the last year he had known him, that you _did not_ mess with him unless you had the time and the patience to _put up_ with him.

A knock at his workshop door surprised him, and he turned to look at it with a mixture of suspicion and curiosity lining his features. He crept over to the door, shotgun ready, and pressed a hidden panel on the wall with the toe of his boot. The metal door hissed open, and none other than Pyro stood on the other side of the door.

"Nngie?" Pyro tilted it's head, posture friendly and open. "Wrrld yw lhk tw jwn us n hr lwrnge?"

"Join yeh in the lounge?" Engineer smiled warmly at his team-mate. He stepped outside of the workshop and subtly clicked the door shut by resting his heel against a tiny button that was the same colour as the wall it was concealed on. "Sure thing."

The personal locks he had set up on his workshop wasn't just to show off his expertise, but for security reasons as well. Of all the members on the RED team, Engineer knew that there were important documents in that room that should never see the light of day, and he could never reveal their secrets to the rest of his team.

"Drrmurmurn und Srrjrr rr plrring chss." Engineer raised an eyebrow at this. He had been planning on avoiding Soldier for the rest of the day, but this was just too good to miss.

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><p>The game of chess did not last very long, the pair of them quickly becoming too drunk to care that you can't move a pawn all the way across the board in one move, or you couldn't take up to 4 pieces at once. Finally, with an angered cry, Demoman threw the board off of the lounge's coffee table with a sweep of his hand and promptly passed out on it. Soldier stood up and staggered off to bed, leaving their spectators to all look around at each other.<p>

"Mrrdrrk?" Pyro looked over at Medic, who was reading. The fire-lover leant over and plucked the book from Medic's grip, who frowned with disapproval at his comrade. "Mrrdrrk, nrrw thrt Srrjrr's grn, crn we drrcrss thr lhttrz?"

"Vhat about zem?" Medic raised an eyebrow, to which Pyro chuckled behind it's mask.

"Whrr rr yhh ghhrng frr hr trn wrhks?"

"Ah yes…zhe ten weeks. Vhell, I believe zhe letters are real. I haven't thought much about where I will be going. Have you, Herr Heavy?" He turned to the larger man, who instantly beamed.

"Bahck to Russia." Heavy clapped his large hands together, and looked down at Medic. "Is perfect place for me."

At this moment, Spy appeared in the doorway of the lounge. The silence in the room was deafening, and Spy was half tempted to leave immediately.

"Good evening." Spy said neutrally, walking over and sitting down on the arm rest of Soldier's now empty chair. He could feel everyone's eyes on him, and decided to fall silent. It took a while for anyone to say anything, but eventually, Heavy nudged Medic, who coughed into his hand.

"Good evening, Herr Spy." Medic managed a thin smile, but it offered no comfort to Spy, who's eyes flitted to Engineer. He had felt the man's eyes boring a hole in the side of his head for a while now, but he frowned deeply when he noticed Engineer looked almost, happy? "Vhat is it you need?"

"Nothing." Spy stood up, the day's strain on his emotions has tired him, made him feel slow. He and Sniper had sat out on the ledge for another few hours after that, not always talking, most of the time is was just thinking with the lanky man gazing through his scope at the surrounding area. It gave Spy comfort to know at least he had one friend in RED, and he appreciated that more than Sniper knew.

As he passed Heavy and Medic and out into the corridor again, turning invisible on his way, he could have sworn that he heard the large man 'whisper' to his friend:

"Docktor…Vhat is wrong with leetle spook? He is always quiet and sad."

"Nozhink, Herr Heavy, he is better left alone." At this, Engineer nodded, and chimed in.

"Well yeh right there, darn them Spahs."

Spy sighed, rubbed a hand over his face slowly, and strode quickly back to his room, seeking the comfort of his cigarettes and a long nights sleep.

* * *

><p>Scout had watched the whole miniature episode with his mouth agape. Then he remembered the Spy's taunting words and strode into the lounge through the other door to the one Spy had left in, to plonk himself down in Soldier's armchair.<p>

"What's up?" He addressed the whole room, gesturing with a hand.

"Nrrt Mrrch" Pyro shrugged, looking up at Engineer, who seemed to be thinking. Almost cautiously, it poked his shoulder. "Nngie?"

"Yeah?" The Texan smiled, snapping out of his thought chain to look back at the masked face. The two exchanged a 'look' before Pyro began to talk quickly, too for the others to understand, gesturing wildly and pointing at Heavy every now and again. Engineer chuckled and nodded along with the conversation, patiently decoding what the masked mercenary was saying. The rest of the team that were present - having not understood a word – waited with baited breath, until Engineer turned to the rest of the team.

"Pyro here's got a point." He declared, and Scout threw up his arms.

"Yeah? What did it say hardhat?" He drummed his fingers impatiently, hating being out of the loop of things.

"Pyro says that we ought teh talk about what we're gonna do in these 10 weeks. S'been coming up teh half a week already and no one's got a plan." He cast a goggled gaze around at the team, before folding his hands together. "We need teh assemble the team together tomorrow at mid day to discuss this." He then added as an afterthought, thinking about his argument with Soldier this morning "In a _civilized_ manner." He concluded his instructions, and Pyro nodded in agreement.

At this, however, Scout let out an amused snort.

"Okay then, but I can't see it being 'civilized' with Solly and Demo bein' there, or you and Spook as a matter-a fact." With this, he stood up and headed for the door, feeling a little smug.

* * *

><p>At 11:30 the next morning, only one member of Team RED was already present in the communal lounge. Engineer, much to nobody's surprise, had been ready at 10:00, and was reading while he waited for the others to arrive. He was not sure how this discussion would turn out, but he had faith that the team would come to some agreement.<p>

Medic and Heavy turned up shortly after, bringing (dragging for the better part) a hung over Demoman that they had found behind the washing machine with them. Heavy was given the job of poking him in the head to make sure that he did not fall back to sleep again, much to his delight. They exchanged morning greetings, before looking towards the door, where Pyro had just wandered in from.

"Grrd Mrrnng." Pyro waved, going over to sit next to Engineer.

"You too Pyro." Engineer looked up from his book, closing it and scooting up for his comrade. The Texan viewed Pyro as a good friend, and had a lot of patience for it, considering the major communication barrier on their friendship. He didn't know a lot about Pyro, but then again, no one did, so it was an accepted thing that the little firebug was a mystery. On the battlefield they had spent a long time together patrolling and fighting back against the BLU's, especially the enemy Spy, while a lot of the other members of the team, such as Scout or Soldier either misunderstood it, or ignored it.

A few minutes rolled past before Medic looked around the room.

"Um, Herr Engineer?"

"Yeah Doc?"

"Vhere are our missing team mates?"

"Oh, well, I woke Sniper up, he should be here soon. Scout will probably be here soon or late, and Soldier?" He stood up. "I guess I better go wake him up too."

Medic frowned, sensing the tension was still thick between the two, and stood up aswell.

"Sit down Engineer, you must watch for Scout. I vill go wake Soldier." And without waiting for any response, the doctor promptly strode out. Heavy stared after him, then grumbled something before giving Demoman an extra hard poke. He didn't like being away from Medic, and it was Demoman's fault he couldn't go with him.

Pyro observed the way Engineer seemed to be trying to distract himself. This in itself was an almost amusing sight, as Pyro knew the man hated to leave things unfinished, and it was plaguing on him. Pyro poked Engineer on the arm, earning a raised eyebrow, before it spoke in an almost admonishing manner.

"Nngie…Yrr rr frrgrrting Sprry." It folded it's arms and tried it's best to look scolding, and it had the right affect, as the Texan frowned deeply.

"I know Pyro, I know." Sulky? Well two could play at that game.

"Wrrll yr srrd wr wrrrd rll br hrr."

"I did…didn't I? Well we _will_ eventually 'all be here', Spah included."

"Nr, Grr Grrt Hrrm. Nrw" Pyro gave him a light push, to emphasise it's point.

At this moment, Medic returned with a less-than happy Soldier, having heard about their little 'holiday meeting', no doubt they were all in for a lot of grief. Engineer waved lightly to both of them, heading to go through the opposite door to go and get the Frenchman. His feet seemed to be made of lead as he walked towards Spy's room. He wasn't tired, he just despised Spy, that was all.

Sniper met him at the door, Scout by his side. The Bostonian seemed to be a little…angry? Hmm, this was strange. Had something happened between the two?

"Not teh worry, Engineer. Spy said 'e would be here." Sniper reassured him, and Pyro gave a little muffled huff from the couch.

"Alrighty then." Turning around again, the shorter man returned to his seat all too happily, and looked around at the other 7 members of RED. They all appeared to be conversing in one way or another, except for Soldier, who seemed to be trying to burn him to death with his stony gaze. Not to be put off, he met the glaring man's gaze and simply smiled, which intensified the glare tenfold.

Scout was having a heated debate with Demoman, who was more awake now, about places they had visited. He was just about go on to talk about this one time when he and his brothers had been skiing, when suddenly the arm-rest next to him had become occupied by a certain lanky, suit-donning Frenchman.

"Shit! Don't do that kind of crap Spook, and why sit next to me anyway?" Scout glowered, then hissed at him. "It aint like nobody's gonna talk to you anyways."

"Oh do _shut up_ boy." Spy countered, turning his gaze away from the aggressive Bostonian. "I am only here for ze meeting."

"Yeah yeah, well I hope it's a short one."

"Same here."

"I might actually end up shooting you in a s-" Scout was interrupted by Sniper growling out:

"Will the pair o'yeh shut up, now. The meetin's started." The dangerous tone in the Australian's voice was mostly directed at Scout, but it had a silencing effect on both of them.

Engineer, having been waiting patiently all this time, looked at his watch. He then stood up as the eyes of RED turned towards him, and began to speak.

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End file.
